Stuck at a part of your story?

If you don’t know what will happen next, here is a great tip to figure it out…or at least get some idea.

Let’s say your character just got fired and you don’t know where to go directly from here, you just know he needs to be fired.

Well, ask yourself: “What isn’t he going to do?” and make a list of your answers.

Using the example above, your character is NOT going to:

• Be abducted by aliens
• Punch his former boss square in the jaw
• Cheer and shout with joy
• Etc.
• Etc.

Now, with a long enough list, you can gauge whereabouts you want your character. Well, I want him to be upset but I don’t want him to be angry and punch his former boss square in the jaw. So why don’t I have him start smoking again?

Not an amazing example, I know. But if you work with it, it will help you. Also, its kind of fun at times and can be a bit on the ridiculous side.

It works for me, and I hope it helps you too!

Prompt #3

Your Plot: Your character is arrested for something he/she didn’t do.

Your character: Make it somebody of a different gender or different race or different sexuality, etc.

Prompt #2

Write a story from the point of view of an inanimate object. Give it thoughts, personify it, and use other tools necessary to make the POV an object.

Prompt #1

Writing Prompt #1

A man elbows your character in a crowd. After he is gone, she discovers her cell phone is too. She calls her own number, and the man answers. She explains that the cell phone has personal information on it and asks the man to send it back to her. He hangs up. Instead of going to the police, your character decides to take matters into her own hands…

Prompt is from http://www.creative-writing-now.com